Music Break: Mike Jones: "Next to You"

We just found out for sure and for real that LeBron James is the best player in the NBA this year. In fact LeBron James and to a lesser extent Chris Paul are in worlds of their own. They have left the League and the rest of the World behind! LeBron and Cp3 smoked 'em! Respect, more power, and the best for the future to them.

In the last report posted, earlier today, all NBA players who have played at least 300 minutes are rated and ranked. But what about comparing teams? It's a little bit hard to do that with that format, and we do want to do that! So the Ratings broken down by team are coming up next.

We worked hard to get the Ratings right and to make sure they are the first ever to include defending not tracked by scorekeepers or anyone else. So in between the posting for the Real Player Ratings for the NBA by player and the Real Player Ratings for the NBA by team, we take a break:



D.J. DRAMA, AKON, TI, & SNOOP DOG: DAY DREAMING

Drama - New Music - More Music Videos

You Can Post Your Response to Anything on Quest Here

Real Player Ratings for the NBA as of Feb 25 2009

Here they are everyone, the Real Player Ratings for the NBA. For the first time, the ratings include an adjustment for defending actions that are not recorded by the League or by anyone else! This is, as they say, really big.

For complete details about how and why the Ratings work, see the User Guide:

USER GUIDE
For very detailed information about how Real Player Ratings were developed and are calculated, please consult the User Guide for Real Player Rating Reports for the NBA, for NBA Teams, and for Games

SCALE FOR REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
An Outstanding Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER RATINGS
NBA: NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
FOR THE 2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
AS OF FEBRUARY 25 2009

NEAR PERFECT PLAYERS / HISTORIC SUPERSTARS
LeBron James Cleveland 1.305
Chris Paul New Orleans 1.216
Dwyane Wade Miami 1.128
Tim Duncan San Antonio 1.093
Kobe Bryant LA Lakers 1.052
Dwight Howard Orlando 1.031
Al Jefferson Minnesota 1.017
Kevin Garnett Boston 1.008
Yao Ming Houston 1.008
Marcus Camby LA Clippers 1.008

HISTORIC SUPERSTARS
Carlos Boozer Utah 0.992
Dirk Nowitzki Dallas 0.974
Andris Biedrins Golden State 0.957
Zach Randolph† New York 0.955
Zach Randolph† LA Clippers 0.947

SUPERSTARS
Andrei Kirilenko Utah 0.939
Andrew Bynum LA Lakers 0.931
Pau Gasol LA Lakers 0.929
Jason Kidd Dallas 0.923
Manu Ginobili San Antonio 0.923
Paul Millsap Utah 0.912
Nate Robinson New York 0.912
Zydrunas Ilgauskas Cleveland 0.912
Rajon Rondo Boston 0.908
Brandon Roy Portland 0.907
Jameer Nelson Orlando 0.906
Deron Williams Utah 0.902
Shaquille O'Neal Phoenix 0.900
Andre Miller Philadelphia 0.895
Danny Granger Indiana 0.895
Chris Bosh Toronto 0.882
Andrew Bogut Milwaukee 0.875
Tony Parker San Antonio 0.866
Andre Iguodala Philadelphia 0.866
Nene Hilario Denver 0.864
Jason Terry Dallas 0.863
Carmelo Anthony Denver 0.860
Chauncey Billups† Denver 0.859
Brandan Wright Golden State 0.855
Amare Stoudemire Phoenix 0.852

STARS
Troy Murphy Indiana 0.847
David Lee New York 0.844
Jose Calderon Toronto 0.844
Steve Nash Phoenix 0.841
Rasho Nesterovic Indiana 0.841
Andray Blatche Washington 0.836
T.J. Ford Indiana 0.832
Devin Harris New Jersey 0.832
Charlie Villanueva Milwaukee 0.830
Vince Carter New Jersey 0.826
Lamar Odom LA Lakers 0.825
Kevin Durant Oklahoma 0.821
Joe Johnson Atlanta 0.820
Antawn Jamison Washington 0.814
Kosta Koufos Utah 0.803
Leandro Barbosa Phoenix 0.802
Mo Williams Cleveland 0.800
Emeka Okafor Charlotte 0.798
LaMarcus Aldridge Portland 0.794
Tracy McGrady Houston 0.793
Kirk Hinrich Chicago 0.789
Ronny Turiaf Golden State 0.787
Matt Harpring Utah 0.787
Kris Humphries Toronto 0.784
Josh Smith Atlanta 0.782
Ramon Sessions Milwaukee 0.781

OUTSTANDING PLAYERS--SOLID STARTERS
Baron Davis LA Clippers 0.772
Jermaine O'Neal† Toronto 0.771
Marreese Speights Philadelphia 0.766
Joakim Noah Chicago 0.766
Gerald Wallace Charlotte 0.765
Paul Pierce Boston 0.765
Ron Artest Houston 0.765
Stephen Jackson Golden State 0.765
Mike Bibby Atlanta 0.764
Mehmet Okur Utah 0.763
James Singleton Dallas 0.763
Al Horford Atlanta 0.762
Roy Hibbert Indiana 0.760
Brad Miller† Sacramento 0.758
Trevor Ariza LA Lakers 0.756
Chris Andersen Denver 0.755
Jose Juan Barea Dallas 0.751
J.R. Smith Denver 0.749
Elton Brand Philadelphia 0.749
Ray Allen Boston 0.748
Erick Dampier Dallas 0.747
Joel Przybilla Portland 0.747
Chris Kaman LA Clippers 0.746
Drew Gooden Chicago 0.745
Allen Iverson† Detroit 0.744
Caron Butler Washington 0.742
Matt Bonner San Antonio 0.740
David West New Orleans 0.738
Delonte West Cleveland 0.738
Kevin Love Minnesota 0.735
Anthony Randolph Golden State 0.734
Josh Howard Dallas 0.733
Corey Maggette Golden State 0.732
Jamario Moon† Toronto 0.730
Rudy Fernandez Portland 0.730
Brook Lopez New Jersey 0.730
Al Harrington† New York 0.729
Boris Diaw† Phoenix 0.727
Marquis Daniels Indiana 0.725
Derrick Rose Chicago 0.725
Kenyon Martin Denver 0.724
Ben Gordon Chicago 0.724
Kurt Thomas San Antonio 0.724
Jeff Foster Indiana 0.723
Rashard Lewis Orlando 0.723
Sergio Rodriguez Portland 0.722
Zaza Pachulia Atlanta 0.721
Joe Smith Oklahoma 0.720
Brevin Knight Utah 0.719
Michael Redd Milwaukee 0.716
Luis Scola Houston 0.716
Renaldo Balkman Denver 0.716
Luol Deng Chicago 0.716
Shawn Marion† Miami 0.715
Antonio McDyess Detroit 0.712
Tim Thomas† New York 0.712
Nick Young Washington 0.710
Tyrus Thomas Chicago 0.710
Anthony Morrow Golden State 0.710
Luke Ridnour Milwaukee 0.710
Kelenna Azubuike Golden State 0.708
Grant Hill Phoenix 0.705
Marcin Gortat Orlando 0.705
Rodney Stuckey Detroit 0.700
C.J. Watson Golden State 0.700

MAJOR ROLE PLAYERS
Rasheed Wallace Detroit 0.697
Carl Landry Houston 0.695
Travis Diener Indiana 0.693
Boris Diaw† Charlotte 0.691
Amir Johnson Detroit 0.688
Hakim Warrick Memphis 0.688
Leon Powe Boston 0.686
Raymond Felton Charlotte 0.684
Russell Westbrook Oklahoma 0.684
John Salmons† Sacramento 0.683
Brandon Bass Dallas 0.682
Jamal Crawford† New York 0.681
Greg Oden Portland 0.681
Darko Milicic Memphis 0.680
Tayshaun Prince Detroit 0.680
Michael Beasley Miami 0.679
Jason Thompson Sacramento 0.675
Hedo Turkoglu Orlando 0.673
Samuel Dalembert Philadelphia 0.673
Keyon Dooling New Jersey 0.669
Jason Richardson† Phoenix 0.666
Eddie House Boston 0.665
Tyronn Lue† Milwaukee 0.665
Steve Blake Portland 0.664
Kevin Martin Sacramento 0.657
Josh Boone New Jersey 0.654
Anthony Carter Denver 0.652
Chris Duhon New York 0.652
Kyle Korver Utah 0.651
Jordan Farmar LA Lakers 0.650

ROLE PLAYERS
Jason Richardson† Charlotte 0.649
Devin Brown New Orleans 0.649
Larry Hughes† Chicago 0.648
Marvin Williams Atlanta 0.648
Darius Songaila Washington 0.648
Beno Udrih Sacramento 0.646
Craig Smith Minnesota 0.646
Marc Gasol Memphis 0.645
Corey Brewer Minnesota 0.644
Bobby Jackson Sacramento 0.639
Mike Conley Memphis 0.638
Richard Hamilton Detroit 0.638
Ronnie Brewer Utah 0.637
George Hill San Antonio 0.637
Ronald Murray Atlanta 0.637
Randy Foye Minnesota 0.634
JaVale McGee Washington 0.634
Chris Wilcox† Oklahoma 0.632
Thaddeus Young Philadelphia 0.632
Luke Walton LA Lakers 0.629
Richard Jefferson Milwaukee 0.628
Ben Wallace Cleveland 0.628
Jeff Green Oklahoma 0.626
Anderson Varejao Cleveland 0.624
Paul Davis LA Clippers 0.621
Roko Ukic Toronto 0.621
Rafer Alston Houston 0.618
Francisco Garcia Sacramento 0.618
Javaris Crittenton† Washington 0.616
Mario Chalmers Miami 0.615
Jarvis Hayes New Jersey 0.614
Mike Dunleavy Indiana 0.614
Derek Fisher LA Lakers 0.613
Eric Gordon LA Clippers 0.612
Jamal Crawford† Golden State 0.612
Lou Williams Philadelphia 0.611
Tony Battie Orlando 0.609
Mike Miller Minnesota 0.609
Udonis Haslem Miami 0.605
Yi Jianlian New Jersey 0.604
Travis Outlaw Portland 0.604
Ryan Anderson New Jersey 0.603
Will Solomon† Toronto 0.601
Luc Richard Mbah a Moute Milwaukee 0.600
Sasha Vujacic LA Lakers 0.600

MINOR ROLE PLAYERS
Chris Quinn Miami 0.599
Spencer Hawes Sacramento 0.593
D.J. Augustin Charlotte 0.592
Kyle Lowry† Memphis 0.591
Kendrick Perkins Boston 0.590
Shelden Williams Sacramento 0.589
Nick Collison Oklahoma 0.589
Acie Law Atlanta 0.588
Willie Green Philadelphia 0.585
Aaron Brooks Houston 0.582
Antonio Daniels† New Orleans 0.580
Von Wafer Houston 0.580
Kwame Brown Detroit 0.580
O.J. Mayo Memphis 0.579
Wilson Chandler New York 0.579
Andres Nocioni† Chicago 0.577
Marco Belinelli Golden State 0.574
Quentin Richardson New York 0.574
Sebastian Telfair Minnesota 0.571
Jarrett Jack Indiana 0.571
Tyson Chandler New Orleans 0.567
Thabo Sefolosha† Chicago 0.566
Rudy Gay Memphis 0.564
Matt Barnes Phoenix 0.563
Anthony Parker Toronto 0.562
Andrea Bargnani Toronto 0.562
Johan Petro† Oklahoma 0.561
DeAndre Jordan LA Clippers 0.558
Linas Kleiza Denver 0.558
Jason Maxiell Detroit 0.558
Monta Ellis Golden State 0.557
Nenad Krstic Oklahoma 0.555
Tony Allen Boston 0.555
Aaron Gray Chicago 0.553
J.J. Hickson Cleveland 0.553

VERY MINOR ROLE PLAYERS
Joey Graham Toronto 0.546
Anthony Johnson Orlando 0.546
Raja Bell† Charlotte 0.544
James Posey New Orleans 0.543
Al Thornton LA Clippers 0.541
Channing Frye Portland 0.537
Eduardo Najera New Jersey 0.535
Dominic McGuire Washington 0.533
Vladimir Radmanovic† LA Lakers 0.531
Ryan Gomes Minnesota 0.530
Brian Cardinal Minnesota 0.529
Donte Greene Sacramento 0.529
Ronnie Price Utah 0.527
Dan Gadzuric Milwaukee 0.527
Morris Peterson New Orleans 0.525
Juan Dixon Washington 0.525
Shane Battier Houston 0.524
Mardy Collins† LA Clippers 0.523
Jamaal Magloire Miami 0.522
Louis Amundson Phoenix 0.521
Fred Jones LA Clippers 0.520
Steve Novak LA Clippers 0.520
Roger Mason San Antonio 0.519
Malik Allen Milwaukee 0.517
Peja Stojakovic New Orleans 0.513
Mikki Moore Sacramento 0.512
Michael Finley San Antonio 0.509
Raja Bell† Phoenix 0.507
Ime Udoka San Antonio 0.507
Earl Watson Oklahoma 0.506
Mickael Pietrus Orlando 0.504
Brent Barry Houston 0.503
Rasual Butler New Orleans 0.501
Wally Szczerbiak Cleveland 0.500
Jared Dudley† Charlotte 0.500

OTHERS: LESS IMPORTANT, BELOW AVERAGE, POOR, EXTREME DEFENSE ONLY TYPE
C.J. Miles Utah 0.498
Jerryd Bayless Portland 0.493
Nicolas Batum Portland 0.489
Gerald Green Dallas 0.487
Kevin Ollie Minnesota 0.486
Mike James† Washington 0.485
Stephen Graham Indiana 0.484
Greg Buckner Memphis 0.481
Darrell Arthur Memphis 0.479
Brian Skinner LA Clippers 0.478
Josh Powell LA Lakers 0.477
Fabricio Oberto San Antonio 0.476
Goran Dragic Phoenix 0.474
Daequan Cook Miami 0.473
Bobby Simmons New Jersey 0.468
Robin Lopez Phoenix 0.467
Gabe Pruitt Boston 0.466
Shannon Brown† Charlotte 0.465
Quinton Ross Memphis 0.463
Solomon Jones Atlanta 0.460
Rodney Carney Minnesota 0.459
Jason Hart LA Clippers 0.459
Rashad McCants† Minnesota 0.457
Yakhouba Diawara Miami 0.456
Trenton Hassell New Jersey 0.456
Maurice Evans Atlanta 0.455
Sasha Pavlovic Cleveland 0.454
Damien Wilkins Oklahoma 0.454
Keith Bogans† Orlando 0.453
Jared Jeffries New York 0.449
Etan Thomas Washington 0.448
Glen Davis Boston 0.448
Reggie Evans Philadelphia 0.447
Bobby Brown† Sacramento 0.447
Luther Head Houston 0.446
Sean Marks New Orleans 0.446
Cuttino Mobley LA Clippers 0.444
DeSagana Diop† Dallas 0.444
Courtney Lee Orlando 0.443
Daniel Gibson Cleveland 0.443
Charlie Bell Milwaukee 0.437
Joel Anthony Miami 0.434
Jason Kapono Toronto 0.432
Chuck Hayes Houston 0.429
Kyle Weaver Oklahoma 0.427
Dahntay Jones Denver 0.424
Juwan Howard† Charlotte 0.420
Joe Alexander Milwaukee 0.416
Francisco Elson Milwaukee 0.415
Antoine Wright Dallas 0.413
Hilton Armstrong New Orleans 0.409
Brandon Rush Indiana 0.408
J.J. Redick Orlando 0.403
Desmond Mason Oklahoma 0.397
Matt Carroll† Charlotte 0.381
Bruce Bowen San Antonio 0.372
DeShawn Stevenson Washington 0.370
Nazr Mohammed Charlotte 0.361
Ricky Davis LA Clippers 0.358
Royal Ivey Philadelphia 0.349
Arron Afflalo Detroit 0.321
Devean George Dallas 0.320
Brian Scalabrine Boston 0.307
Adam Morrison† Charlotte 0.293

USER GUIDE
For very detailed information about how Real Player Ratings were developed and are calculated, please consult the User Guide for Real Player Rating Reports for the NBA, for NBA Teams, and for Games

You Can Post Your Response to Anything on Quest Here

Happy Days are Here Again

Happy days are here again: the Real Player Ratings (better than ever) are ready for the entire NBA! They are posted in the next post!

Although it takes a hard day's work to calculate these using a computer, the internet, and Excel, the amount of time needed to make the defending adjustments is less than feared, meaning that we will be able to in the future meet any reasonable production schedule for the All NBA Real Player Ratings.

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New Orleans Hornets Real Player Ratings as of February 23 2009

Chris Paul is the MVP in terms of quality and Chris Paul is also the MVP in terms of quantity for the New Orleans Hornets so far in the 2008-09 season.

NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Quality of Players
Includes all tracked actions and adjustments for hidden defending
2008-09 Regular Season
As of Feb 23, 2009

Chris Paul 1.216
David West 0.738
Devin Brown 0.649
Antonio Daniels† 0.580
Tyson Chandler 0.567
James Posey 0.543
Morris Peterson 0.525
Peja Stojakovic 0.513
Rasual Butler 0.501
Sean Marks 0.446
Hilton Armstrong 0.409

SCALE FOR REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
A Great Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Real Player Production (RPP) is the sum of all the good things minus the sum of all the bad things a player has done since the season began. Although RPP includes all tracked defensive actions, there is no methodology as of yet for adjusting RPP for hidden or untracked defending, such as man to man defending that forces missed shots. Therefore, you should, in order to fairly evaluate the following ratings, remember that the better defenders have done some more for the team relative to the lessor defenders than the ratings are showing.

NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Quantity of Players
Includes all tracked actions
2008-09 Regular Season
Through Feb. 23, 2009

Chris Paul 2207.65
David West 1328.30
Peja Stojakovic 857.35
Rasual Butler 772.10
James Posey 767.65
Tyson Chandler 534.00
Devin Brown 328.85
Antonio Daniels† 277.10
Hilton Armstrong 260.45
Sean Marks 193.00
Morris Peterson 189.70

HORNETS MVPS
Congratulations and respect are due to CHRIS PAUL, who has been leading the Hornets in quality basketball so far this season.

Congratulations and respect are due to CHRIS PAUL, who has contributed more than any other player to the Hornets so far this season.

HORNETS SUPERSTARS AND STARS
Historic Superstars
Chris Paul

Superstars
None

Stars
None

HORNETS OTHER KEY, NON-STAR PLAYERS

Solid Starters
David West

Major Role Players
None

Role Players
Devin Brown

======= DEFENDING AND OFFENSIVE SUB RATINGS ========================================

NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
OVERALL DEFENDING SUB RATINGS
Includes both tracked and hidden defending
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 23, 2009

Devin Brown 0.514
Chris Paul 0.374
James Posey 0.300
Sean Marks 0.299
Tyson Chandler 0.294
David West 0.273
Hilton Armstrong 0.257
Rasual Butler 0.169
Morris Peterson 0.152
Peja Stojakovic 0.143
Antonio Daniels† 0.128

NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
OFFENSIVE SUB RATINGS
Includes all tracked offensive actions
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 23, 2009

Chris Paul 0.902
David West 0.492
Antonio Daniels† 0.467
Morris Peterson 0.375
Peja Stojakovic 0.371
Rasual Butler 0.344
Tyson Chandler 0.321
Devin Brown 0.310
James Posey 0.301
Hilton Armstrong 0.221
Sean Marks 0.204

============ STARS AND SUPERSTARS IN PICTURES =================

CHRIS PAUL: HISTORIC SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUALITY AND MVP--QUANTITY


USER GUIDE
For very detailed information about how Real Player Ratings were developed and are calculated, please consult the User Guide for Real Player Rating Reports by Team

You Can Post Your Response to Anything on Quest Here

Portland Trailblazers Real Player Ratings as of February 23 2009

Brandon Roy is the MVP in terms of quality and Brandon Roy is also the MVP in terms of quantity for the Portland Trailblazers so far in the 2008-09 season.

PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Quality of Players
Includes all tracked actions and adjustments for hidden defending
2008-09 Regular Season
As of Feb 23, 2009

Brandon Roy 0.907
LaMarcus Aldridge 0.794
Joel Przybilla 0.747
Rudy Fernandez 0.730
Sergio Rodriguez 0.722
Greg Oden 0.681
Steve Blake 0.664
Travis Outlaw 0.604
Channing Frye 0.537
Jerryd Bayless 0.493
Nicolas Batum 0.489

SCALE FOR REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
A Great Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Real Player Production (RPP) is the sum of all the good things minus the sum of all the bad things a player has done since the season began. Although RPP includes all tracked defensive actions, there is no methodology as of yet for adjusting RPP for hidden or untracked defending, such as man to man defending that forces missed shots. Therefore, you should, in order to fairly evaluate the following ratings, remember that the better defenders have done some more for the team relative to the lessor defenders than the ratings are showing.

PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Quantity of Players
Includes all tracked actions
2008-09 Regular Season
Through Feb. 23, 2009

Brandon Roy 1658.65
LaMarcus Aldridge 1395.90
Travis Outlaw 811.05
Rudy Fernandez 800.00
Steve Blake 788.15
Joel Przybilla 781.40
Greg Oden 665.95
Sergio Rodriguez 496.70
Nicolas Batum 460.55
Jerryd Bayless 208.85
Channing Frye 188.20

TRAILBLAZERS MVPS
Congratulations and respect are due to BRANDON ROY, who has been leading the Trailblazers in quality basketball so far this season.

Congratulations and respect are due to BRANDON ROY, who has contributed more than any other player to the Trailblazers so far this season.

TRAILBLAZER5 SUPERSTARS AND STARS
Historic Superstars
None

Superstars
Brandon Roy

Stars
LaMarcus Aldridge

TRAILBLAZERS OTHER KEY, NON-STAR PLAYERS

Solid Starters
Joel Przybilla
Rudy Fernandez
Sergio Rodriguez

Major Role Players
Greg Oden
Steve Blake

Role Players
Travis Outlaw

======= DEFENDING AND OFFENSIVE SUB RATINGS ========================================

PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
OVERALL DEFENDING SUB RATINGS
Includes both tracked and hidden defending
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 23, 2009

Joel Przybilla 0.548
Sergio Rodriguez 0.482
Rudy Fernandez 0.459
Channing Frye 0.378
LaMarcus Aldridge 0.375
Greg Oden 0.323
Travis Outlaw 0.283
Brandon Roy 0.228
Nicolas Batum 0.214
Steve Blake 0.200
Jerryd Bayless 0.199

PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
OFFENSIVE SUB RATINGS
Includes all tracked offensive actions
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 23, 2009

Brandon Roy 0.717
LaMarcus Aldridge 0.519
Steve Blake 0.510
Rudy Fernandez 0.431
Sergio Rodriguez 0.430
Greg Oden 0.405
Travis Outlaw 0.376
Jerryd Bayless 0.364
Joel Przybilla 0.301
Nicolas Batum 0.289
Channing Frye 0.285

============ STARS AND SUPERSTARS IN PICTURES =================

BRANDON ROY: SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUALITY AND MVP--QUANTITY




























LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE: STAR


USER GUIDE
For very detailed information about how Real Player Ratings were developed and are calculated, please consult the User Guide for Real Player Rating Reports by Team

You Can Post Your Response to Anything on Quest Here

Utah Jazz Real Player Ratings as of February 23 2009

Carlos Boozer is the MVP in terms of quality and Deron Williams is the MVP in terms of quantity for the Utah Jazz so far in the 2008-09 season.

UTAH JAZZ
REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Quality of Players
Includes all tracked actions and adjustments for hidden defending
2008-09 Regular Season
As of Feb 23, 2009

Carlos Boozer 0.992
Andrei Kirilenko 0.939
Paul Millsap 0.912
Deron Williams 0.902
Kosta Koufos 0.803
Matt Harpring 0.787
Mehmet Okur 0.763
Brevin Knight 0.719
Kyle Korver 0.651
Ronnie Brewer 0.637
Ronnie Price 0.527
C.J. Miles 0.498

SCALE FOR REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
A Great Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Real Player Production (RPP) is the sum of all the good things minus the sum of all the bad things a player has done since the season began. Although RPP includes all tracked defensive actions, there is no methodology as of yet for adjusting RPP for hidden or untracked defending, such as man to man defending that forces missed shots. Therefore, you should, in order to fairly evaluate the following ratings, remember that the better defenders have done some more for the team relative to the lessor defenders than the ratings are showing.

UTAH JAZZ
REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Quantity of Players
Includes all tracked actions
2008-09 Regular Season
Through Feb. 23, 2009

Deron Williams 1364.45
Paul Millsap 1264.25
Mehmet Okur 1233.50
Ronnie Brewer 1097.90
Andrei Kirilenko 960.50
Kyle Korver 613.95
C.J. Miles 612.45
Carlos Boozer 409.50
Brevin Knight 370.00
Kosta Koufos 363.80
Ronnie Price 325.20
Matt Harpring 297.65

JAZZ MVPS
Congratulations and respect are due to CARLOS BOOZER, who has been leading the Jazz in quality basketball so far this season.

Congratulations and respect are due to DERON WILLIAMS, who has contributed more than any other player to the Jazz so far this season.

JAZZ SUPERSTARS AND STARS
Historic Superstars
Carlos Boozer

Superstars
Andrei Kirilenko
Paul Millsap
Deron Williams

Stars
Kosta Koufos
Matt Harpring

JAZZ OTHER KEY, NON-STAR PLAYERS

Solid Starters
Mehmet Okur
Brevin Knight

Major Role Players
Kyle Korver

Role Players
Ronnie Brewer

======= DEFENDING AND OFFENSIVE SUB RATINGS ========================================

UTAH JAZZ
OVERALL DEFENDING SUB RATINGS
Includes both tracked and hidden defending
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 23, 2009

Andrei Kirilenko 0.611
Matt Harpring 0.563
Brevin Knight 0.550
Kosta Koufos 0.547
Paul Millsap 0.529
Kyle Korver 0.461
Carlos Boozer 0.356
Mehmet Okur 0.291
Ronnie Price 0.271
Ronnie Brewer 0.225
Deron Williams 0.147
C.J. Miles 0.070

UTAH JAZZ
OFFENSIVE SUB RATINGS
Includes all tracked offensive actions
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 23, 2009

Deron Williams 0.774
Carlos Boozer 0.668
Paul Millsap 0.526
Mehmet Okur 0.496
Andrei Kirilenko 0.477
Matt Harpring 0.439
Ronnie Brewer 0.433
C.J. Miles 0.430
Kosta Koufos 0.415
Brevin Knight 0.360
Kyle Korver 0.343
Ronnie Price 0.321

============ STARS AND SUPERSTARS IN PICTURES =================

CARLOS BOOZER: HISTORIC SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUALITY








































DERON WILLIAMS: SUPERSTAR AND MVP-QUANTITY

ANDREI KIRILENKO: SUPERSTAR






















PAUL MILLSAP: SUPERSTAR
KOSTA KOUFOS: STAR






















MATT HARPRING: STAR





























USER GUIDE
For very detailed information about how Real Player Ratings were developed and are calculated, please consult the User Guide for Real Player Rating Reports by Team

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Maintaining a Black Sheep Can Cost You Dearly

As every basketball watcher knows, except in extremely rare and well known special circumstances, such as Manu Ginobili of the Spurs, starters are considered the primary basketball players of every NBA team. There is no tradition, general practice, or reward in the NBA for teams for obscure reasons to not start players good enough to be starters. There is no secret strategic payoff for that. It's a loser of a strategy, pure and simple. The argument that J.R. Smith is needed for offense on the 2nd squad is nonsensical simply because in most NBA games, three or more starters are on the court most of the time.

Although J.R. Smith of the Nuggets plays at a starter's level, and has clearly earned a starting role, he except when the Nuggets are damaged by injuries does not get any starts. Smith must be aware that the fact he doesn't start is supposed to mean that he is not as good a player as are starting 2-guards around the League, including Dahntay Jones! This is not true, but that is what not starting is supposed to mean. As a result, his confidence level is lower than it would be if he were starting. And his confidence level is a major part of the J.R. Smith puzzle to begin with.

Confidence reduction is the worst thing you would want for a player who despite being qualified to start overall, is by nature one of the most inconsistent good players in the NBA. It is an observable fact that basketball players who start are generally more consistent than basketball players who do not start. The way I see it, the main two reasons for that are the more minutes that come with starting and the greater level of confidence instilled in starters as compared with non-starters.

To use an old cliché, if you are a starter, you let the “game come to you” more so than if you are a non-starter. Since they are lower on the roster and therefore under more pressure to get better, many reserve players press more and end up achieving less due to trying too hard on some plays. In the case of J.R. Smith, who ever since he was on the Nuggets has been repeatedly criticized for negatives while having his positives downplayed, the pressing and trying too hard associated with not starting is going to be much worse than usual. Smith practically looks to be just as much of a rookie presser now as he did when he was actually a rookie.

Linas Kleiza is another example of a reserve player who tries too hard from time to time, and ends up producing less than if he just let “the game come to him.” Other players though, such as Chris Andersen, are seemingly oblivious to whether they start or not. As a manager or a coach, you have to know who is who in this respect on your team, and consider this factor in setting your starting lineups.

By refusing to start him and keeping him in a perpetual “trying too hard mode,” the Nuggets are maximizing the inconsistency of Smith and are literally wasting some of the money they are paying him. So much for being economical in the economics emergency. Why would you put unnecessary, extra pressure on an inconsistent, pressing, and sometimes lower confidence player who is qualified to be a starter? This is kind of strange, don’t you think?

Although J.R. Smith is playing more than 27 minutes a game, he is still not a starter. On the one hand, Coach George Karl has substantially relented on his refusal to give Smith starter minutes, but on the other hand, he has still refused to start him. This is strange, don’t you think?

Further, If Dahntay Jones starts in the playoffs, the Nuggets are going to be playing with one hand tied behind their backs, and not only because the Nuggets will be sacrificing dearly at the offensively very important 2-guard position. J.R. Smith is a much better player than Dahntay Jones, although Jones may have a better personality and may be more intelligent.

Recent calculations based on points allowed per minute on the court show that J.R. Smith is actually a substantially better defender these days than Jones. The latest defending sub ratings show J.R. Smith at .409 and Dahntay Jones at .195. No, it may not appear that way, since Smith is both on offense and on defense pressing too much, is inconsistent, and is often not very smooth looking. But the honest truth is that the Nuggets surrender substantially more points per time when Jones is playing than when Smith is playing.

The bottom line is that if the Nuggets lose a playoff series 4 games to 3 or 4 games to 2, a likely reason why will be that Dahntay Jones started over J.R. Smith, which led to Smith not having enough confidence and consistency. It’s strange that a team would hurt itself in this way, don’t you think?

Further, the strategy of trying to get JR Smith to play better by punishing him with reduced minutes has run its course, regardless of whether it ever worked or whether it was counterproductive from day #1. It’s strange that the Nuggets would continue something which either never worked or at least has run it’s course, don’t you think?

All of these things means that there is mystery here as to why JR Smith can not start for the Denver Nuggets. I have a second theory now to add to the main theory.

The main theory remains simply that George Karl continues to detest Smith a lot, especially because he is relatively immature and impulsive, and so is unable to give him the "honor" of starting. To Mr. Karl, there is a lot of honor in basketball, and starting is one of the most powerful honors of all. But if this is true, what about the 27 minutes a game? First, to Karl and others like him, the number of minutes is not as honorable as the number of starts. Second, Mr. Karl may have been ordered to play Smith for at least 25 minutes a game or so by the management of the Nuggets.

But there is another possible theory now.

We start by noting that we know that in the wake of the economics downturn, Nuggets owner Stanley Kroenke was the first NBA owner to become a lot cheaper, and to this day remains among owners one of the most determined to reduce payroll below the NBA’s soft salary cap so as to avoid any luxury tax liability. Players such as Marcus Camby and Eduardo Najera were let go for songs, replaced by players off the waiver wire who command less than a tenth as much money. The draft was practically ignored. In other words, the Nuggets have the misfortune of having an owner who went from being one of the most generous to one of the most preoccupied with and determined to react to the economic meltdown.

Although details of a player's contract are not made public, most of them leak out. About the only details that don’t always leak out are what the incentives are, if there are incentive clauses. These are performance clauses: if the stipulated performance is achieved, the player makes substantially more money.

When J.R. Smith was signed to a 3-year, $16.5 million contract last August, there were incentives put in it. We don't know exactly what they are, but we obviously know they relate to producing more rather than less on the basketball court. Whether or not the number of starts is specifically one of the performance measures involved, we know that number of starts indirectly affects the ability of any player to achieve any performance measure you care to name. And since this incentive is common in contracts that have incentives, it would not surprise me in the least to find out that number of games started is one of the incentives in the Smith contract.

Now given that the economic downturn keeps getting worse rather than better, since Mr. Kroenke is being joined by more and more NBA owners with respect to becoming cheaper, and since Mr. Kroenke, as one of the wealthiest business persons in the world has more to lose than almost anyone, we have to consider the possibility that J.R. Smith is not starting for financial reasons. Specifically, Mr. Kroenke may have quietly ordered Coach George Karl to not start J.R. Smith no matter what, or perhaps unless he became one of the best three or four 2-guards in the League, which is too tall an order even for Smith, especially since he is, you will remember, trying too hard.

If such an order came down from on high, it would have been music to Mr. Karl's ears.

When Smith doesn’t start, he most likely is not going to make the extra money mentioned in the incentive clauses of his contract. This may mean several million dollars of savings for the economically battered Mr. Kroenke, from pay Smith doesn’t get and from avoided luxury tax.

So if the Nuggets lose their playoff series that they are supposed to win, for example, against Houston with no Tracy McGrady, against Phoenix with no Amare Stoudemire, or against Utah with no Carlos Boozer, it may be just as much the fault of Stanley Kroenke and the economics meltdown as it is the fault of George Karl.

Whether it’s George Karl refusing to look at J.R. Smith as anything other than a black sheep, whether it’s the owner more or less in a panic regarding the economic meltdown, or both, it does not reflect well on the Nuggets franchise. Can you be cheap toward your black sheep and still be considered a serious NBA franchise that can contend in the playoffs? No, you can not. And even more importantly, you can not afford to have a black sheep in the first place.

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San Antonio Spurs Real Player Ratings as of February 21 2009

Tim Duncan is the MVP in terms of quality and Tim Duncan is also the MVP in terms of quantity for the San Antonio Spurs so far in the 2008-09 season.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS
REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Quality of Players
Includes all tracked actions and adjustments for hidden defending
2008-09 Regular Season
As of Feb 21, 2009

Tim Duncan 1.093
Manu Ginobili 0.923
Tony Parker 0.866
Matt Bonner 0.740
Kurt Thomas 0.724
George Hill 0.637
Roger Mason 0.519
Michael Finley 0.509
Ime Udoka 0.507
Fabricio Oberto 0.476
Bruce Bowen 0.372

Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
A Great Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Real Player Production (RPP) is the sum of all the good things minus the sum of all the bad things a player has done since the season began. Although RPP includes all tracked defensive actions, there is no methodology as of yet for adjusting RPP for hidden or untracked defending, such as man to man defending that forces missed shots. Therefore, you should, in order to fairly evaluate the following ratings, remember that the better defenders have done some more for the team relative to the lessor defenders than the ratings are showing.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS
REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Quantity of Players
Includes all tracked actions
2008-09 Regular Season
Through Feb. 21, 2009

Tim Duncan 1835.60
Tony Parker 1214.95
Manu Ginobili 910.50
Matt Bonner 799.70
Roger Mason 762.40
Michael Finley 676.95
Kurt Thomas 480.50
George Hill 460.20
Bruce Bowen 271.75
Ime Udoka 200.40
Fabricio Oberto 198.80

SPURS MVPS
Congratulations and respect are due to TIM DUNCAN, who has been leading the Spurs in quality basketball so far this season.

Congratulations and respect are due to TIM DUNCAN, who has contributed more than any other player to the Spurs so far this season.

SPURS SUPERSTARS AND STARS
Historic Superstars
Tim Duncan

Superstars
Manu Ginobili
Tony Parker

Stars
None

SPURS OTHER KEY, NON-STAR PLAYERS
Solid Starters
Matt Bonner
Kurt Thomas

Major Role Players
None

Role Players
George Hill

======= DEFENDING AND OFFENSIVE SUBRATINGS ==========================================

SAN ANTONIO SPURS
OVERALL DEFENDING SUBRATING
Includes both tracked and hidden defending
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 21, 2009

Tim Duncan 0.526
Kurt Thomas 0.512
Ime Udoka 0.402
George Hill 0.394
Matt Bonner 0.366
Manu Ginobili 0.357
Bruce Bowen 0.338
Michael Finley 0.235
Roger Mason 0.212
Tony Parker 0.194
Fabricio Oberto 0.182

SAN ANTONIO SPURS
OFFENSIVE SUBRATING
Includes all tracked offensive actions
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 21, 2009

Tony Parker 0.710
Tim Duncan 0.660
Manu Ginobili 0.607
Matt Bonner 0.462
George Hill 0.376
Roger Mason 0.359
Kurt Thomas 0.343
Fabricio Oberto 0.346
Michael Finley 0.316
Ime Udoka 0.191
Bruce Bowen 0.152

============ STARS AND SUPERSTARS IN PICTURES =================

TIM DUNCAN: HISTORIC SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUALITY AND MVP--QUANTITY








































MANU GINOBILI: SUPERSTAR








































TONY PARKER: SUPERSTAR









































USER GUIDE
For very detailed information about how Real Player Ratings were developed and are calculated, please consult the User Guide for Real Player Rating Reports by Team

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Denver Nuggets Real Player Ratings as of February 20 2009

Nene is the MVP in terms of quality and Chauncey Billups is the MVP in terms of quantity for the Denver Nuggets so far in the 2008-09 season.

DENVER NUGGETS
REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Quality of Players
Includes all tracked actions and adjustments for hidden defending
2008-09 Regular Season
As of Feb 20, 2009

Nene Hilario 0.864
Carmelo Anthony 0.860
Chauncey Billups 0.859
Chris Andersen 0.755
J.R. Smith 0.749
Kenyon Martin 0.724
Renaldo Balkman 0.716
Anthony Carter 0.652
Linas Kleiza 0.558
Dahntay Jones 0.424

Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
A Great Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Real Player Production (RPP) is the sum of all the good things minus the sum of all the bad things a player has done since the season began. Although RPP includes all tracked defensive actions, there is no methodology as of yet for adjusting RPP for hidden or untracked defending, such as man to man defending that forces missed shots. Therefore, you should, in order to fairly evaluate the following ratings, remember that the better defenders have done some more for the team relative to the lessor defenders than the ratings are showing.

DENVER NUGGETS
REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Quantity of Players
Includes all tracked actions
2008-09 Regular Season
Through Feb. 20, 2009

Chauncey Billups 1322.40
Nene Hilario 1303.00
Kenyon Martin 1050.05
Carmelo Anthony 1034.90
J.R. Smith 919.45
Anthony Carter 765.75
Linas Kleiza 668.90
Chris Andersen 584.40
Dahntay Jones 379.50
Renaldo Balkman 267.65

NUGGETS MVPS
Congratulations and respect are due to NENE, who has been leading the Nuggets in quality basketball so far this season.

Congratulations and respect are due to CHAUNCEY BILLUPS, who has contributed more than any other player to the Nuggets so far this season.

NUGGETS SUPERSTARS AND STARS
Historic Superstars
None

Superstars
Nene
Chauncey Billups
Carmelo Anthony

Stars
None

NUGGETS OTHER KEY, NON-STAR PLAYERS
Solid Starters
Chris Anderson
J.R. Smith
Kenyon Martin
Renaldo Balkman

Major Role Players
Anthony Carter

Role Players
None

======= DEFENDING AND OFFENSIVE SUBRATINGS ==========================================

DENVER NUGGETS
OVERALL DEFENDING SUBRATING
Includes both tracked and hidden defending
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 20, 2009

Nene Hilario 0.493
Chris Andersen 0.431
Kenyon Martin 0.415
J.R. Smith 0.409
Renaldo Balkman 0.379
Carmelo Anthony 0.362
Anthony Carter 0.329
Chauncey Billups 0.293
Linas Kleiza 0.201
Dahntay Jones 0.195

DENVER NUGGETS
OFFENSIVE SUBRATING
Includes all tracked offensive actions
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 20, 2009

Chauncey Billups 0.645
Carmelo Anthony 0.574
Nene Hilario 0.483
J.R. Smith 0.451
Renaldo Balkman 0.412
Anthony Carter 0.398
Linas Kleiza 0.383
Kenyon Martin 0.380
Chris Andersen 0.360
Dahntay Jones 0.282

NENE: SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUALITY


CARMELO ANTHONY: SUPERSTAR


CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUANTITY


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Houston Rockets Real Player Ratings as of February 20 2009

Yao Ming the MVP in terms of quality and he is also the MVP in terms of quantity for the Houston Rockets so far in the 2008-09 season.

HOUSTON ROCKETS
REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Quality of Players
Includes all tracked actions and adjustments for hidden defending
2008-09 Regular Season
As of Feb 20, 2009

Yao Ming 1.008
Tracy McGrady 0.793
Ron Artest 0.765
Luis Scola 0.716
Carl Landry 0.695
Rafer Alston 0.618
Aaron Brooks 0.582
Von Wafer 0.580
Shane Battier 0.524
Brent Barry 0.503
Luther Head 0.446
Chuck Hayes 0.429

Perfect Player? Is there Such a Thing? 1.000 and more
Historic Super Star 0.950 and more
Super Star 0.850 0.949
A Star Player; An Extremely Good Starter 0.775 0.849
A Great Player; A Solid Starter 0.700 0.774
Major Role Player 0.650 0.699
Role Player 0.600 0.649
Minor Role Player 0.550 0.599
Very Minor Role Player 0.500 0.549
Poor Player at This Time 0.450 0.499
Very Poor Player at This Time 0.350 0.449
Extremely Poor Player at This Time / Disaster and less 0.349

REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Real Player Production (RPP) is the sum of all the good things minus the sum of all the bad things a player has done since the season began. Although RPP includes all tracked defensive actions, there is no methodology as of yet for adjusting RPP for hidden or untracked defending, such as man to man defending that forces missed shots. Therefore, you should, in order to fairly evaluate the following ratings, remember that the better defenders have done some more for the team relative to the lessor defenders than the ratings are showing.

HOUSTON ROCKETS
REAL PLAYER PRODUCTION
Quantity of Players
Includes all tracked actions
2008-09 Regular Season
Through Feb. 20, 2009

Yao Ming 1453.20
Luis Scola 1064.25
Rafer Alston 915.85
Ron Artest 890.00
Tracy McGrady 840.80
Carl Landry 723.85
Aaron Brooks 621.70
Shane Battier 464.65
Von Wafer 402.40
Brent Barry 273.15
Chuck Hayes 228.30
Luther Head 143.60

ROCKETS MVPS
Congratulations and respect are due to YAO MING, who has been leading the Rockets in quality basketball so far this season.

Congratulations and respect are due to YAO MING, who has contributed more than any other player to the Rockets so far this season.

ROCKETS STARS
Historic Superstars
Yao Ming

Superstars
None

Stars
Tracy McGrady

======= DEFENDING AND OFFENSIVE SUBRATINGS ==========================================

HOUSTON ROCKETS
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 20, 2009
OVERALL DEFENDING SUBRATING
Includes both tracked and hidden defending

Yao Ming 0.564
Ron Artest 0.481
Tracy McGrady 0.374
Chuck Hayes 0.355
Shane Battier 0.338
Brent Barry 0.304
Luis Scola 0.296
Carl Landry 0.252
Rafer Alston 0.226
Aaron Brooks 0.187
Von Wafer 0.163
Luther Head 0.101

HOUSTON ROCKETS
2008-09 REGULAR SEASON
As of Feb 20, 2009
OFFENSIVE SUBRATING
Includes all tracked offensive actions

Yao Ming 0.872
Tracy McGrady 0.712
Luis Scola 0.683
Carl Landry 0.643
Ron Artest 0.632
Rafer Alston 0.576
Von Wafer 0.575
Aaron Brooks 0.526
Shane Battier 0.456
Luther Head 0.446
Brent Barry 0.418
Chuck Hayes 0.374

YAO MING: HISTORIC SUPERSTAR AND MVP--QUALITY AND MVP--QUANTITY


TRACY MCGRADY--STAR



USER GUIDE
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The Ultimate Comparison Between Nene and Marcus Camby

Quest has recently made revolutionary upgrades in our ability to evaluate the defending of players. For a new, very detailed, technical User Guide on how we are rating, comparing, and contrasting the defending of NBA players, please visit here when you get a chance. The very same defending ratings Guide can also be found in the lower area of the overall guide: the User Guide to Real Player Ratings by Team, which is here.

In the rest of this report, I will be using terminology that you will not fully understand, at least technically, unless you review that Guide. But if you have no time to slog through the Guide, you will still be able to get the facts and conclusions that the methodology is yielding.

Many Nuggets fans who decided to remain fans and to not abandon ship after the total annihilation by the Lakers have claimed that Camby is so bad in these untracked aspects of defending that it was a good thing that he was given away. So now, let's find out: just how bad is Marcus Camby in man to man defending, in defensive recognition and rotating, in responding to screens, and so forth?

Drum roll, please....

Marcus Camby, Clippers, Hidden Filtered Defending Rating, 2008-09 through Feb. 8: .054.

The League-wide average is approximately .088, so on the one hand it is true that although he is about the best rebounder and the best blocker of the NBA, Camby is not one of the best players in the League when it comes to these other parts of defending. The worst thing you can say about Camby's defending and still be correct is to say that outside of blocking, rebounding, and his very low fouling rate, the other aspects of Camby's defending are well below but not grossly below the NBA average.

But it is not true that he is so bad at the other, hidden stuff that he is a defensive liability overall. As you will see below, Camby was last year and remains this year, overall, one of the very best defenders in the NBA, despite not being a very good man to man or zone recognition and zone rotating defender.

Let's look at defending more broadly now, and to make this really interesting, let's compare and contrast Camby to Nene in every way we can. And to make it more interesting still, lets look at Camby both last year on the Nuggets and this year on the Clippers.

Hidden Defending (Filtered) Ratings
Marcus Camby for the Nuggets, 2007-08: .036
Marcus Camby for the Clippers, 2008-09: .054
Nene for the Nuggets, 2008-09: .118

Scored (Tracked) Defending Ratings
Marcus Camby for the Nuggets, 2007-08: .535
Marcus Camby for the Clippers, 2008-09: .476
Nene for the Nuggets, 2008-09: .277

Overall Defending Ratings
Marcus Camby for the Nuggets, 2007-08: .606
Marcus Camby for the Clippers, 2008-09: .585
Nene for the Nuggets, 2008-09: .514

Offensive Sub Rating
Marcus Camby for the Nuggets, 2007-08: .378
Marcus Camby for the Clippers, 2008-09: .434
Nene for the Nuggets, 2008-09: .485

OVERALL REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Marcus Camby for the Nuggets, 2007-08: .949
Marcus Camby for the Clippers, 2008-09: .964
Nene for the Nuggets, 2008-09: .881

OBSERVATIONS
1. We can see that Nene is a far better man to man and zone recognition and rotation defender than is Camby (.118 for Nene this year versus .054 looking at Camby this year or versus .036 looking at Camby last year).

2.Camby is a far better player in terms of scored defending (which is, to remind you, rebounding plus blocking plus steals minus personal fouling) even more so last year than this year.

3. Overall we can see that both of these players are among the very best defenders in the NBA, with Camby's overall rating being .606 last year, .585 this year, and Nene's being .514. Anything over .500 puts you into a very elite class of defenders.

4. You have to exaggerate the importance of man to man, zone, and other hidden defending and to minimize the importance of rebounding, blocking, and avoiding personal fouls in order to make the case that Nene is a better overall defender than is Marcus Camby. As the technical guide explains, Quest takes the position that hidden defending is almost as important as tracked defending, but certainly not more important.

5. This one is the big surprise to me: Marcus Camby is playing much better offensively than he was last year for the Nuggets: .434 versus .378. So while Nene is playing much better for the Nuggets this year than Camby played for the Nuggets last year, Camby is much improved offensively from last year to this year, so the offensive gap between Nene and Camby this year is relatively small, much smaller than I was thinking. Further, we can say that Marcus Camby is clearly being coached better offensively by the Clippers than he was by the Nuggets, where he wasn't really coached at all.

6. Mostly as a result of this offensive surprise, Camby is able to maintain his lead over Nene in overall Real Player Rating: .964 versus .881. Camby is in the historic super star range while Nene is in the super star range.

In summary, while Nene has been s big, big upside surprise for the Nuggets, and while it is very true that Nene is far better than Camby in the untracked aspects of defending, nevertheless Camby remains the better player overall this season, since he remains far ahead of Nene in tracked defending, and since the offensive gap between Nene and Camby is much less than expected.

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